Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald suspended two weeks following hazing inquiry
Northwestern football coach Pat Fitzgerald has been suspended for two weeks without pay following an investigation into hazing allegations inside the school's football program.
The school announced the investigation back in January, and while the investigation summary said there wasn’t "sufficient evidence to believe that the coaching staff knew about the ongoing hazing conduct," investigators did determine "that there had been significant opportunities to discover and report the hazing conduct."
The report also stated that hazing incidents took place in the team locker room and might have started at "Camp Kenosha," referring to the location where the Wildcats would hold training camp – Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Fitzgerald, who played at Northwestern from 1993-96 and has served as the program's head coach since 2006, will begin his unpaid suspension Friday. He will not miss any games during the 2023 season.
Northern will implement several measures to help prevent further hazing incidents, which includes putting an end to training camp practices in Kenosha and having a non-staff member regularly monitor the team locker room, according to ESPN.
The Wildcats are coming off of a disappointing 1-11 season in 2022. The team will open the 2023 campaign on Sept. 3 against Rutgers.
